title: Major changes in a rhythmic ball-bouncing task occur at age 7 years.
abstract: The aim of the study was to investigate the development of a rhythmical skill of children aged from 5 to 12 years old. Five age groups (5-6, 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, and young adults) performed a virtual ball bouncing task (16 forty-second long test trials). Task performances, racket oscillation, ball-racket impacts as well as the ball-racket coupling were analysed. The results showed a change in both performance and behaviour at the age of 7 years old. Before this age, children exhibited restricted perceptual-motor coordination with a high frequency of racket oscillation and a poor level of performance. After the age of 7, cycle-to-cycle adaptive coordination based on visual information was progressively acquired leading to increasing performance levels with age. Overall these results revealed a rapid change in capability to perform the ball bouncing task across age with a late emergence of the required coordination and significant change in the coordination at the age of 7.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire CIAMS (Complexité, Innovation, Activités Motrices et Sportives), Univ Paris-Sud, Orsay, France.
authors.forename: Christophe
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bazile
authors.forename: Isabelle A
authors.initials: IA
authors.lastname: Siegler
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Benguigui
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*